Review - Witches of Ash and Ruin by E. Latimer

 

 

 

 

Title: Witches of Ash and Ruin

Author: E. Latimer

Pages: 384

Publisher: Freeform

Release Date: 3rd March 2020

 

Blurb from Goodreads:

 

Seventeen-year-old Dayna Walsh is struggling to cope with her somatic OCD; the aftermath of being outed as bisexual in her conservative Irish town; and the return of her long-absent mother, who barely seems like a parent. But all that really matters to her is ascending and finally, finally becoming a full witch-plans that are complicated when another coven, rumored to have a sordid history with black magic, arrives in town with premonitions of death. Dayna immediately finds herself at odds with the bewitchingly frustrating Meiner King, the granddaughter of their coven leader.

And then a witch turns up murdered at a local sacred site, along with the blood symbol of the Butcher of Manchester-an infamous serial killer whose trail has long gone cold. The killer's motives are enmeshed in a complex web of witches and gods, and Dayna and Meiner soon find themselves at the center of it all. If they don't stop the Butcher, one of them will be next.

With razor-sharp prose and achingly real characters, E. Latimer crafts a sweeping, mesmerizing story of dark magic and brutal mythology set against a backdrop of contemporary Ireland that's impossible to put down.

 Goodreads | Amazon UK | Amazon US

 

 

 

My Review:

*I received an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and NetGalley*

Both Dayna Walsh's home-life and school-life are tough after someone told the town that Dayna is bisexual. On top of that, Dayna struggles with OCD and hasn't seen her mother for several years because her father sent her away to Camp.

The only thing that Dayna looks forward to is spending time with her Coven. Dayna can't wait to ascend and become a full witch, when she will come into her powers.

Things go awry when another Coven arrives in town, the leader of which potentially has a history of using black magic.

When a witch is murdered, the two Covens must work together to stop more witches from turning up dead at the hands of a serial killer.

Will Dayna become a full witch?

Can the Covens work together to stop more witches dying?

The premise of Witches of Ash and Ruin intrigued me - witches plus a serial killer seemed like a pretty good combination to me.

Dayna was a likeable protagonist and I felt sorry for her as she didn't have an easy life. I liked her relationship with the others in her Coven.

There was an interesting mix of characters and it was good to see how they clashed and interacted.

I liked the representation of OCD and bisexuality.

The magic was interesting, as were the different gods.

The plot was good overall and held my attention. The pacing was pretty good and there were some enjoyable action scenes, but I wasn't gripped by what happened.

The writing style was easy to follow and I liked the setting of the small Irish town, but we don't see much of it.

While I did enjoy this book, it didn't blow me away, but there were several elements that I liked.

Overall, this was an enjoyable, unique read.